The Property Podcast

The Property Podcast is the podcast for all property investors, new or experienced. Rob Bence and Rob Dix discuss a different property topic and property news item every week, passing on their knowledge and experience to the listeners. They both invest in UK property so they practise what they preach. No hard sell, no bull, just straight-talking property investment advice!

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If you're listening to this during that in-betweeny time between Christmas and New Year then well done you - that is hardcore podcast listening!

News

This would usually be news this week but is in fact more news of the whole year. We'll start with what's happened with us. We launched a gorgeous new website for The Property Hub, full of courses, info, and a fab forum. If you don't use it to do more than listen to the podcast then please go check it out.

Our Magazine subscribers doubled this year and it's fair to say we're delighted with the publication we put out. Our team work incredibly hard on this and it must be pretty good to be doubling it's subscribers this year. If you're still not a subscriber then you can sign up right here so you don't miss a single copy in 2017. We have a new features editor, some new big-hitting writers starting in the new year, and we're so excited with what is to come.

The Meetups have grown from a handful in 2015 to over 35 regular monthly events, and this has been entirely down to Abbey, Vicky and The Meetup Leaders who have helped to grow this project. If you're yet to come along to your local Meetup then please do come along and say hi, we'll be popping up at as many Meetups as possible to say hello in 2016.

We also held a Northern Summit and whilst our plans are not quite nailed down just yet - we are sure we'll do something in the North in 2017. Meanwhile there may be a couple of tickets available for the London Summit in February, but be quick because these could sell out any time now - check here to see if there are still tickets available.

News this week

This is the year that will be remembered for bringing us Brexit and Trump - and the truth is that any personal opinions aside, we're not scared of either. This is definitely not a time to be fearful if you know your stuff. We'll have a new course out in the next few weeks which is all about how the market may progress, so look out for that as it will definitely cover any potential impact of these big events.

Bigger news (in property at least) were the stamp duty changes for people with second homes and beyond - so basically all BTL investors. This one was particularly hard on investors in the South East. Definitely a big event for the property investment market.

What next for The Robs?

Rob D has committed to writing a new book (feel free to chase him up on that), we're going to up our game massively in social media (which wouldn't be hard to be fair!). Our social media channels will be bringing you really interesting content in 2017, so please watch this space and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

We have another big announcement or two which we hope you will love but we can't say any more about these for now. You'll just have to keep listening throughout the new year to find out more.

Resource of the week

There can only be one resource of the week this week. It's not new, but it is vital. It's the best time of year for setting goals and there is no better way than with our Goal Setting Course. Check it out here.

Join the conversation

What did 2016 bring for you? What are your plans for the new year? Continue the conversation over at The Property Hub Forum.

If you enjoyed The Property Podcast, please leave a review on iTunes

Reviews are really important in helping other people to find the show, so by way of thanks we read out every single review we receive on air.

Nobody can deny that 2016 has been a weird year for the world, but it's been a good year for us in general. This week's episode is a run down of the things we have loved in the past twelve months.

News this week

Shock - as BTL is over (apparently). This news story has some pretty depressing statistics attached to it, and if you read just the first paragraph it's not great news! But (as you probably suspected) there's a bit more to this! The statistics used are not exactly thorough, with data coming from only one firm of estate agents.

An excellent reminder of why we should always read beyond the headlines.

Resource of the week

This episode is really one long resource of the week list, so if that's your favourite part of The Property Podcast, then keep listening.

NEED MORE ANSWERS?

The Property Hub Summit is the place to get all your questions personally answered by Rob & Rob, and build a network of other smart, motivated investors.

Over the course of a full day at a swanky hotel we'll help you set your goals, form a plan to get you there, overcome your obstacles, and give you the support system you need to make sure nothing gets in your way.

Just don't hang around - there are only four Summits each year, and just 16 places available at each!

Due to the great response to the last 'listeners' deals' podcast, we're happy to say we're bringing you more of these this week, which is brilliant news for us because we love this format!

This week we check out deals from Tom, Hannah, and Jamie, and these three deals vary greatly!

Resource of the week

It's another Trello based resource of the week, but bear with us because Trello aficionados will love this one. Butler for Trello will help automate a ton of the things you do manually - and you can set this up using plain English commands. Play about with it and see what it can do for you. Check it out here.

News this week

£5bn of Northern Powerhouse projects made available to Chinese investors - well this is one we will add to the 'told you so' file!

We’ve been talking about overseas investors looking outside London and this backs it up. We doubt this will be the last good news story for The Northern Powerhouse, but check this one out here.

Join the conversation

Which of these deals would be the one to pique your interest? Head over to the forum to discuss this more.

If you enjoyed The Property Podcast, please leave a review on iTunes

Reviews are really important in helping other people to find the show, so by way of thanks we read out every single review we receive on air.

NEED MORE ANSWERS?

The Property Hub Summit is the place to get all your questions personally answered by Rob & Rob, and build a network of other smart, motivated investors.

Over the course of a full day at a swanky hotel we'll help you set your goals, form a plan to get you there, overcome your obstacles, and give you the support system you need to make sure nothing gets in your way.

Just don't hang around - there are only four Summits each year, and just 16 places available at each!

This week's podcast is always a popular subject - what's gone wrong for The Robs in the world of property!

Rob & Rob tell you all about their more challenging moments in 2016, and what lesson's we're learned throughout along the way.

Resource of the week

This week's resource comes from a guy Rob D met at our recent Discovery Day. If you're looking for a new way to listen to podcasts via your iPhone then try Overcast.FM. This is a powerful yet simple podcast player that allows you to pick up extra speed without distortion, which dynamically shortens silences in talk shows.

News this week

This week's news story from The Guardian is music to The Robs ears and we've filed it straight under the category of 'told you so'.

“Richard Donnell, insight director at Hometrack, said he expected Oxford and Cambridge to see falls in growth similar to that in London.

“The impetus for house price growth is shifting from the affordability-constrained cities in southern England to cities in the midlands and the north of England,” he sad. “Regional cities have more attractive affordability levels and house prices have significant potential upside for growth in the near term subject to the outlook for the economy.”

NEED MORE ANSWERS?

The Property Hub Summit is the place to get all your questions personally answered by Rob & Rob, and build a network of other smart, motivated investors.

Over the course of a full day at a swanky hotel we'll help you set your goals, form a plan to get you there, overcome your obstacles, and give you the support system you need to make sure nothing gets in your way.

Just don't hang around - there are only four Summits each year, and just 16 places available at each!

This week's podcast is one we've never done before. We're going to analyse your latest deals, and thank you to all of you who have submitted details to us. If this is popular then we'll do it again in a few weeks as we have lots to get through! If you'd like to submit a deal for us to look into in the future, then you can do so right here.

Meetups are tonight!

Before we get started, a quick reminder to head along to your nearest Property Hub Meetup this evening. It's your last chance this year to come along, so we hope you'll be there and bringing some Christmas cheer with you!

Rob B is going to be heading to St Alban's and you'll find Rob D at our South Essex Meetup, so if you'd like to say hi then you know where to find them.

Resource of the week

A serious resource this week but a great one if you're concerned about safety when out and about viewing properties. The PanicGuard App has a host of safety features that can help you feel that bit more secure. You can choose a contact to get alerted if you activate the alarm. You can also have contacts track your journey, and set a timed alarm that only you can deactivate

Join the conversation

What did you think to the three deals discussed on the podcast today? Would you have been tempted by Bradford, opted for Bedford or would anyone have had a different take on the Bristol investment? For future reference, we'd love to see your potential investments for towns that don't begin with B too!

This week's podcast is all about the major developments in the planning that you need to be aware of.

HS2 route 2 announced

The second phase of this development has now been announced and there are some unexpected winners (Wigan and Crewe, we're looking at you) and some potential losers. Not just for train geeks (like our very own Rob B), this link demonstrates just how commutable these northern cities are - 55 mins from Crewe to London, anyone?!

Heathrow Expansion - Not just big news for London

The Airports Commission have estimated that Heathrow expansion will create up to 179,800 jobs and up to £211bn in economic region benefits across the UK by 2050.

Crossrail 2

Overcrowding on the Tube is forecast to double by 2041, and National Rail services will face similar challenges! Crossrail 2 would increase central London’s rail capacity by more than 10 per cent. You can check out the submission to the National Infrastructure Commission right here.

Northern Hub Rail improvements

A £1 billion pound project to electrify railways in the northwest, slashing journey times and increasing capacity (not to be confused with HS3). This also includes station upgrades, new and improved lines. It will increase the number of passenger train services across the region by 40%. Journey times will fall between Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds.

Said to be the biggest single construction project ever to take place in Greater Manchester, the 10-year scheme will more than double the size of Terminal Two and link it to an improved Terminal Three. Doubling the number of airport jobs to 40,000 within 30 years and adding 10m annual passengers in just a decade, the move bolsters Manchester’s battle for the government to recognise the true worth of regional airports and underlines Manchester Airport’s place at the heart of The Northern Powerhouse.

Manchester Place (£3bn)

10,000 new homes being built over 150 acres

Paradise Project in Birmingham

HS2 and banks relocating aren’t the only thing getting the headlines in Birmingham. Paradise Project is considered one of the biggest city centre regen projects outside of London. £500m will be spent on shops, offices and improving the layout of the city centre.

Bizarrely, the Robs are asked all the time if they invest in property themselves. The answer is yes they definitely do! This week's episode is all about finding out more about the recent deals they have been working on.

Rob B talks about his new Bradford investment which is looking at producing some very impressive figures indeed, and about a new deal he is working on in a super-prime location in Manchester, which should be brilliant for capital growth.

Rob D's recent investment news hasn't quite gone to plan, but you'll have to listen to the podcast to find out what happened there - needless to say, true to form, he managed to find a positive to take away from the situation.

This week we're talking about how to run a successful letting agency. It's something many landlords with growing portfolios think about doing, and also a potential way to get into the property industry by starting your own business.

We've built up an agency of our own (Yellow Lettings) over the last couple of years, and we talk about what we think are the key drivers of success – including:

Getting qualified (the NFOPP property management qualification is the one we chose)

Getting compliant (joining an ombudsman scheme, having the right insurance and protecting client money)

If you're a Property Podcast listener you're already a winner, but in this episode we discuss how to cultivate a winning mindset to push yourself to even greater levels of success.

In property as with anything else, what separates the high-achievers from the rest generally isn't technical ability or knowledge – it's having the attitude to spot and capitalise on opportunities, and overcome the inevitable challenges.

This week our friend Pete Matthew is back, guiding us through alternative ways to get exposure to property – without owning it directly.

We discuss different types of "collective investment" vehicles (such as REITs, OIECs and a whole bunch of other acronyms) as well as investments that track property rather than holding it, such as ETFs. During our chat we get to the bottom of:

Why it's useful to look at alternatives to holding property directly

All the different options, and how to tell them apart

The pros and cons of these types of investment

How to research the prospects of different opportunities

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out more of Pete's fine work at Meaningful Money

The Rob's are possibly not unbiased on this frequently asked question, but they do try to give a balanced take on the well publicised adage that you shouldn't keep more that 10% of your net worth in bricks and mortar.

Listen to this week's episode and let us know your thoughts on this one over on the forum.

Grab your passport and join us as we head off around the world of property investment, investigating whether you should be hopping on a plane instead of into a car to research your next acquisition.

We look into:

The reasons why investing abroad is attractive to so many people

The prospects for popular investment spots like Spain and the USA

The risks and opportunities in up-and-coming locations like Eastern Europe

The "wildcard" locations for if you're feeling particularly brave

What to watch out for to make sure your the only risk of losing your shirt is if the airline misplaces your baggage

If you'd like to learn more, we've also got a huge feature on investing overseas in the next issue of the Property Hub Magazine – with more detail on the areas we mention, plus other countries tipped by overseas investment experts.